Back to School

Back to School! After a very hot summer full of activities, we are all once again back in Colegio Privado Adonai, our educational home for 10 months. So many things happened this summer! Our sixth grade teacher, Emilia, got married. Two teachers are expecting little ones in August and September! Some travelled to Brazil, others to Argentina. We all had a wonderful rest...now it's time to get back into routine!
The doors opened on February 9th. Parents and students filled the patio and hallways. Everyone wanted to meet their new teachers and use their new book bags, pencils, and notebooks. The pre-school kids cried (as well as some of their moms), the grade school students gave hugs to teachers and ran here and there meeting up with their classmates, the middle school kids paired off or formed small groups, excited to see each other again, and the 12th graders dragged their feet...one more year of this!
Well, we're back into school life, schedules and activities. God has been so good. This will be the eighth year and as of yesterday we already have 290 students. Just imagine...290 kids we can witness to every day! 290 kids memorizing bible verses every day! 290 kids praying in a small, neighborhood school! 290 kids celebrating Christ! Wow! That's pretty cool!
We want to take this time to thank you, also, for donating towards scholarships for many of these students. A lot of these kids probably wouldn't be in a school setting mentioned above if it wasn't for your donations and prayers. Thank you so much for helping us touch some of these kids lives.
Paola is a first grader privileged to have a 1/2 a scholarship this year ($250 towards her school tuition). She's from the neighborhood. Her mom, a registered nurse, is looking for a job and her dad works as an upholster.
Thursday, Oscar and I were travelling to San Pedro. It was an extremely hot afternoon to be travelling, but we had to go for some paperwork. We got a call from a teacher. The upholtering shop across the road from school was in flames! Paola's dad works there and Suely's parents are the owners! One of our teachers is a firefighter and probably was the first on the scene. School work was paralyzed as the kids and teachers crowded around the gates to watch. Ben posted two videos that were recorded: ONE, TWO. One of the firefighters fainted inside the building in the smoke and our heroic teacher, Gloria, ran in after him saving his live.
In the end, most everything was burned and destroyed. Two families were left with only the clothes on their backs (Paola's family, and another one), and Suely's family was left without a shop, machines and other materials.
Our school had a collection on Monday for food and clothes for these families. We were so thankful for the donations from our student body.
A week later, we are still seeing the sad clean-up. Pray for these three families as they get back on the road to recovery! Pray for us as well, so that we can offer them words of encouragement and hope.
So, yeah, school started and, as always, full of excitement!
Thank you for your notes of encouragement, donations, and prayers!
All of us at "Adonai" say...THANKS!